Hello hello!

Can you believe it? I’m posting two days in a row!

To kind of preface this post (before I share my meals), I thought I’d give a bit of an update. I mentioned yesterday that I’ve been dealing with acid reflux problems again. If you’ve been reading for a while, you might remember that, due to my allergies, I have some pretty nasty acid reflux. I’ve been to gastroenterologists, doctors, and allergists, and the most recent regimen I’ve been assigned is steroids and a double-dosage of GERD medicine. I’ve also done a lot of research on my own, and found numerous websites that give lists of alkaline/acidic foods, so I’ve been trying to stay away from those that are known to make reflux worse.

So much of what I found on the topic contradicted itself (annoying), so basically, I just bagged it all and decided to do some trial-and-error, and figure out what works best for me. Probably the worst part about this is that I spend days on end waiting for something to work (or not), which just means more suffering.

Anyway, I’ve been monkeying around with my diet a lot. Obviously, eating healthy foods will help matters, but to lessen the burn in my chest/throat/mouth, I find that carbs – bread, pretzels, cereal, etc. – help. So what you’re going to see below are some of my trial-and-error meals. For a while last week, I thought my problem was solved when I stopped eating soy (tofu, edamame, soy products in other foods), but in the last few days, the reflux has started up again. It’s so frustrating!

Well, so much for not complaining. If you read through all of that, I appreciate it. If not, don’t worry, we can still be friends. 😉

WIAW

Hosted by Jenn of Peas and Crayons. Head on over to her site for the link-up party (and delicious recipes and adorable pictures of her daughter)!

Breakfasts

This has been the meal that has remained the same, for the most part. For a few days, I wasn’t eating dairy, thinking that was the culprit. However, my reflux was just as bad, so I’ve been sticking with Greek yogurt. It doesn’t seem to be hurting, and at least it has probiotics. Anyway, oats are known to help reflux-sufferers, so I tried this combo the other day:

Plain oatmeal, a drizzle of maple syrup, flax seeds, raisins, and a dollop of Greek yogurt.

Lunches and Dinners

These two meals have been difficult to figure out. I’m allergic to turkey, nuts, eggs, and (I think) beef, and ham is bad for reflux. This leaves fish, chicken, tofu (which I might be allergic to), dairy (which is supposedly not good for reflux), and beans as sources of protein. Oy. Here are some of the meals I’ve come up with:

Steamed asparagus and baked cod.

White Chicken Chili (click HERE for the recipe!)

Chicken noodle soup and a side of broccoli.

The good news is, all of these meals were delicious and nutritious!

Snacks

I didn’t really snap any pictures of snacks I’ve been eating, but like I mentioned above, I’ve been craving carbs. I don’t know if that’s a common thing with people who suffer from acid reflux, but they certainly seem to help me!

Desserts

Ok. So I gave up chocolate for FIVE DAYS. Yep, you read that right. It was awful, and in the end, I don’t really think it made a difference. Ugh. Overall, I’ve been trying to take it easy in this category – maybe a spoonful of ice cream, a handful of dried fruit, or a graham cracker sheet. Pathetic. And ineffective.

(recycled photo)

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Exercise Feb. 23 – Mar. 1
Sunday: 20 minutes bike + 30 minutes elliptical
Monday: Jillian Michaels’ Shred It with Weights + 15 minutes treadmill
Tuesday: P90X Yoga
Wednesday: Treadmill
Thursday: rest
Friday: Jillian Michaels’ Kickboxing
Saturday: something at the gym 🙂

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In other news…Did anyone watch the season finale to Downton Abbey?? I loved it. So much better than last season’s, and I loved all the open endings for the next.

My long-term sub job could start literally any minute – I’m just waiting for the call from the teacher saying she’s having the baby! If everything goes according to the plan/due date, I still have a few more weeks, but as for now, I’m playing the waiting game. 🙂

I hope this post wasn’t too full of complaints. To say these issues and this pain aren’t forefront on my mind would be lying, but I also wanted to share them with you. Part of my reason for blogging is to chronicle life with allergies, and unfortunately, this reflux is linked to them. However, I do know that it could be something worse than this, so for that, I have to be thankful.

Questions for the day:

Do you suffer from heartburn/reflux/EOE? How do you cope?

What are your cravings like – salty, sweet, carb-y, healthy?

Have you ever had to give up your favorite food?

If you do watch Downton Abbey, who are you rooting for: Gillingham or Blake? 😉 I’m all for Gillingham!

As always, thanks for reading, and have a great day!